Knowing The Word in Luke 7:31-35

The People of this Generation

7:31 “To what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? 32 They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another,

“‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’

33 For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ 34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ 35 Yet wisdom is justified by all her children.”

Comments

Jesus often got himself into trouble by telling people what they were like through analogies. In this instance, he compared them to children who were not intelligent enough to figure things out. They said the ascetic John would not dance because his teaching was too uncomfortable. So they called him a demon, the opposite of what he was. They said Jesus would not weep regarding the sinners in his midst. The Pharisees and religious people of the day shunned such low company, but not Jesus. To win sinners for God, he freely associated with them.

Some people could not be pleased. They would accept neither John nor Jesus. They simply rejected the plans of God. But the wise will accept both John and Jesus and will not walk in the critical ways of those who can never be pleased.

Application

What should we be doing as followers of Jesus? To whom should we reach out? Are we pleased when God brings sinners into our company?

Prayer

Lord Jesus, you were generous to sinners, never shaming but always loving, helping them acknowledge their errors and bringing them into truth. They were dead in their sins and you brought them into life. Help me to see others through your eyes that I may rejoice with you when one of your lost sheep is found.